Vacuum cleaners with cord reels



May 24, 1960 s .1.w. MOMBERG ETAL '2,937,396

VACUUM CLEANERS WITH CORD REELs Filed Jan. 15, '1957 INVENTORS James M4 Momberg By Franc/1s A. Ga/l y AT TRNEY United States Patent O VACUUM CLEANERS WITH CORD REELS James W. Momberg, Somerville, and Francis A. Gall, Plainfield, NJ., assignors to The Singer Manufacturing Company, Elizabeth, NJ., a corporation of New Jerseyl Filed Jan. 15, 1957, Ser. No. 634,235

Claims. (Cl. 15-323) This invention relates to domestic appliances and more particularly to a rotatable, canister-type vacuum cleaner equipped with a cord reel, and the principal object of the invention is to provide an improved domestic appliance device of this character.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved domestic appliance in the form of a canister type vacuum cleaner in which an upper portion of the cleaner is rotatably mounted on a base portion.

A further object of the invention is to provide an irnproved domestic appliance in the form of a canister type vacuum cleaner having a cord reel rotatably mounted in the base portion of the cleaner.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved domestic appliance in the form of a canister type vacuum cleaner having both an upper portion and a cord reel rotatably mounted with respect to the base portion of the cleaner.

With the above and other objects in view, as will hereinafter appear, the invention comprises the devices, combinations, and arrangements of parts hereinafterset forth and illustrated in the accompanying drawings of a preferred embodiment of the invention, from which the several features of the invention and the advantages attained thereby will be readily understood by those skilled in the art.

In the accompanying drawing which forms a part of this specification:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a canister type vacuum cleaner embodying the present invention and,

Fig. 2 is a central vertical sectional View disclosing details of the lower portion of the vacuum cleaner shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, this invention is illustrated as embodied in a domestic appliance in the form of a canister type vacuum cleaner which has two superimposed can-shaped members, the lower member 16 being upwardly open, and the upper member 17 being inverted to form a cover for the lower member 16. The two members 16 and 17 are held together by a gasket 18 and a plurality of locking devices 19. The upper member 17 houses a dust bag (not shown) and is provided with an integrally formed intake fitting 21. The intake fitting 21 receives a hose 22 and supports a pick-up handle 23. The lower member 16 houses an electrically operated motor-fan unit 24, and supports an electric switch 26 and a normally closed blower connection 27. A lowermost portion 28 of the lower member 16'has a bottom wall 31 and a cylindrical side wally 32, the latter being provided with a plurality of exhaust ports 33. The portion 28 of the member 16 is surrounded by a base member 34. The base 34, by means of a plurality of balls 35, rotatably supports the members 16 and 17 which of course function as a unit. Each of the balls 35 is received in opposed complemental cavities 36, one cavity being formed in the bottom wall 31 and the other cavity being formed in a shelf wall 37, which is part of the base member 34.

The base member 34, in addition to the previously Cil , 2,937,396 Patented May 24, 1960 ICC mentioned shelf wall 37, has a bottom wall 38 which has a depending foot nng 39; a lower cylindrical side wall 41, which connects the external perimeter of the bottom wall 38 with the internal perimeter of the shelf wall 37; an upper cylindrical side wall 42; and an inturned lip 43. The lip 43'is carried onthe upper edge of the wall 42, whereas the Vlower edge of the wall 42 is joined to vthe outer perimeter of the shelf wall 37. The base member 314 is rotatably held to the lower member 16 by a vertically extending shouldered screw 44 which is surrounded by a lixed bushing 45. A shouldered portion 46 of the screw 44 is received by the internal hole of an externallyv threaded bushing 48, which at its lower end has a ange 49. A nut 51, positioned above a washer 52, is threaded to the bushing 48 and thereby causes the llange 49 to secure an insulated strip 53 .to the bottom surface of the bottom wall 31. The lower end of the reduced neck portion 54 of the screw 44 is threaded and, after passing through a hole in the bottom wall 38, receives a nut 58. The screw 44 and the nut 58 hold the lower member 16 to the base member 34 in such a manner that the member 16-17 can, as previously indicated, rotate as a unit with respect to the base member 3'4.

In addition to the above, a cord reel 61 is rotatably mounted with-respect to the base member 34. The cord reel 61 may be of any known construction and may, for example, be equivalent to the cord reel shown in U.S. Patent No. 2,639,456. Preferably the cord reel 61 Will be rotatably mounted on the bushing 45 and will comprise a pair of ilanges 63 and 64, a coiled spring 66, a pair of slip rings 67 and 68, the latter being engaged by a pair of liexible brushes 7l and 72 carried by the insulated strip 53. It will be understood that the various parts of the cord reel 61 will be fastened together and that one end of the spring 66 will be secured to the fixed bushing 45 and that the other end of the spring 66 will be attached to the cord reel 61. Wound around the cord reel 61 is an electric extension cord 73, the free end of which passes through a hole 74 formed in the wall r41. From the hole 41, the cord 73 passes through a chute 76 which is held to the base member 34 by rivets77. A cord stop having arms 78 and 79 is pivotally mounted on the chute 76, arm 78 being biased downwardly by a helical spring 81. The arm 78 may also be moved upwardly against the spring 81 by one arm of a pivotally mounted foot pedal 82. The space between the walls32 and 42 is iilled with a porous sound deadening material into which air from the ports 33 exhausts.

The extension cord 73 has two conductors, one of which is connected to the slip ring 67 and the other of which is connected to the slip ring 68. The two brushes 71` and 72, which contact the slip rings 67 and 68 respectively, are individually connected to conductors 83 and 84, which by means of a third conductor 86 and the switch 26 energize the motor 24.

The herein disclosed vacuum cleaner may be placed in the center of a room with the foot ring 39 resting in a xed position on the floor surface. Pulling the extension cord 73 will unwind sufcient cord from the reel 61, thereby tensioning the spring 66. Then, by use of theV hose 22 and a dusting tool (not shown), the whole room can be cleaned simply by rotating the combined members 16, 17 and 21 on the base member 34. It should be noted that both the cord reel 61, and the unit member 16-17 are rotatably mounted on the base member 34. Also, the cord reel 61 and the combined member 16- 17 are mutually rotatable one with respect to the other. Because of the slip-ring-brush mechanism 67-68-71- 72 it is possible to rotate the motor 24 with respectV to the base 34 and at the same time to conduct electric energy from the cord 73 to the motor 24. YPlacing the slip rings 67-68 and brushes 71--72 between the two rotatably mounted members 16 and 61 makes one set of slip rings and brushes do double duty in that electric current is carried to two rotatably mounted members by one set of slip rings and brushes.

Having thus set forth the nature of our invention, what we claim herein is:

l. A device comprising a base member, a domestic appliance supported on top of said base member and mounted to rotate about a vertical axis, a cord reel mounted to rotate about a vertical axis and interposed between said base member and said domestic appliance, a slip-ring-brush mechanism made up of two elements, one of said elements of said slip-ring-brush mechanism being associated with said cord reel, and the other of said elements of said slip-ringbrush mechanism being associated with said domestic appliance, this association being such that electric current can pass from said cord reel to said domestic appliance while said cord reel and said domestic appliance are rotating with respect to said base and with respect to each other.

2. In a domestic appliance, a base member adapted to rest on a surface, an electrically operated device member supported on top of said base member and mounted to rotate about a vertical axis, a cord reel rotatably mounted to rotate about a vertical axis on one of said members, an electric cord wound on said cord reel and extending from said base member, and a slip-ring-brush mechanism interposed between said cord reel and said electrically operated device member, said slip-ring-brush mechanism having a portion carried by said cord reel and having another portion carried by said electrically operated device member, and said slip-ring-brush mechanism conducting electrical energy from said electric cord to said rotatably mounted electrically operated device member.

3. In a vacuum cleaner assembly, a base member adapted to be placed in the center of a room to be cleaned, a canister type vacuum cleaner member supported on top of said base member and mounted to rotate about a vertical axis, a cord reel rotatably mounted to rotate about a vertical axis on one of said members, an electric cord wound on said cord reel and extending from said base member, a cleaning hose operatively xed to said canister type vacuum cleaner member, and a slip-ringbrush mechanism interposed between said cord reel and said canister type vacuum cleaner member, said slipring-brush mechanism having a portion carried by said cord reel and having another portion carried by said vacuum cleaner member, and said slip-ring-brush mechanism conducting electrical energy from said electric cord to said rotatably mounted canister type vacuum cleaner member.

4. In a vacuum cleaner, a base adapted to be placed in the center of a room to be cleaned, a canister type vacuum cleaner supported on top of said base and mounted to rotate about a` vertical axis, a cord reel rotatably mounted to rotate about a vertical axis on said base, an electric cord carried by said cord reel and having a free end extending from said base, a cleaning hose operatively xed to said canister type vacuum cleaner, and a slip ring-brush mechanism interposed between said cord reel and said canister type vacuum cleaner, said slip-ringbrush mechanism having a portion carried by said cord reel and having another portion carried by said vacuum cleaner, and said slip-ring-brush mechanism conducting electrical energy from said electric cord to said rotatably mounted canister type vacuum cleaner.

5. In a vacuum cleaner, a base adapted to be placed in the center of a room to be cleaned, a canister type vacuum cleaner supported on top of said base and mounted to rotate about a vertical axis, a cord reel rotatably mounted to rotate about a vertical axis between said base and said canister type vacuum cleaner, an electric cord carried by said cord reel, and having a free end extending from said base, a cord stop mechanism carried by said base and engaging said electric cord, a cleaning hose operatively fixed to said canister type vacuum cleaner, and a slip-ring-brush mechanism interposed between said cord reel and said canister type vacuum cleaner, said slip-ringbrush mechanism having a portion carried by said cord reel and having another portion carried by said vacuum cleaner, and said slip-ring-brush mechanism conducting electrical energy from said electric cord to said rotatably mounted canister type vacuum cleaner.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,859,352 Albee May 24, 1932 2,246,862 Smellie June 24, 1941 2,248,585 Ross et al. July 8, 1941 2,348,966 Dow et al May 16, 1944 2,591,214 Tamarin Apr. 1, 1952 2,734,214 Gerber Feb. 14, 1956 2,769,997 Sheehan Nov. 13, 1956 2,779,432 Meyerhoefer Jan. 29, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 653,166 Germany Nov. 16, 1937 755,679 Great Britain Aug. 22, 1956 

